For Potomac Falls boys’ basketball team, good things come to pass

David Marshall collected Potomac Falls’ 10th pass of the possession, sank a three-pointer from the right wing for an early three-possession lead and knew exactly where to look when Briar Woods called a timeout that wouldn’t stop the bleeding Friday night.

First, the 6-foot-2 senior forward pointed to the teammate who set him up; then, he wagged three fingers at the packed side of the Panthers’ home gym; and finally, he found Coach Jeff Hawes a couple of yards from the bench for a shoulder bump roughly a foot in the air.

It was a familiar scene for the Panthers en route to a 61-49 victory that kept them undefeated (19-0) with three games left before the playoffs.

“My teammates were on my side the whole time,” said Marshall (24 points), who transferred from a Florida high school before the fall. “Being unselfish, it comes with the territory here. It comes with being a Panther.”

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That selfless approach has been the standard under Hawes since he took over in 1997 when the school opened. His teams, too, have adopted his persona. In the offseason, he runs a youth basketball camp bluntly dubbed Jeff Hawes Old School Basketball Camp, and he pushes the Panthers with that same intensity. Beyond a gruff exterior, he gives the Panthers a figurehead they can relate to. He dances like a robot in the locker room. If Hawes feels that he made a mistake or let his team down in practice, he will do push-ups or sprints.

It has worked: In the past 15 years, the Panthers have more state titles (two) than losing seasons (one).

“He has a crazy amount of energy. He just does the little things that make you love him,” senior Josh Prince said. “I know I’m going to go in there and work hard, but at the end of the day I’m going to have fun doing something I love with people I love to be around.”

Still, the Panthers exited the playoffs earlier than anticipated the past two years. This group, the Panthers say, is building toward March. Their record has been perfect, Prince said, but they haven’t played a perfect game. Still, throughout the season and behind nine playmaking seniors, they have become harder to predict.

They’re hovering around 20 assists per game, the best mark of any season Hawes can remember. It’s the indicator, they say, of their camaraderie.

“I do feel like I have become a better man since joining Potomac Falls basketball,” senior Johnny Opiola said. “And playing for my local community and them having my back, it’s incredible.”

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Against Briar Woods (8-12), Potomac Falls never abandoned that identity, though the Falcons stressed the Panthers early with a flurry of blocks in transition and even took a lead late into the first quarter.

Still, a string of reverse layups and threes, including Marshall’s, put the Falcons away early in the second quarter. The Panthers took a 29-19 lead at the half, opened the third quarter on a 13-4 run and never let the game get back within 10, keeping the frenetic home crowd invested throughout.

“We are not satisfied with being undefeated,” Opiola said. “We have much bigger goals. We’re still hungry.”